This invention relates to a connector assembly terminating a pair of individually insulated wires and, more particularly, to an improved contact for use in such an assembly.
Local area networks interconnecting computers in a workplace are becoming more prevalent. One of the factors limiting the speed with which the computers can communicate over the network is the type of transmission medium connecting the computers to the network. For reasons of economy, twisted pair shielded cable has been developed that provides a sufficiently high data transfer rate. One such proposed type of cable is known as Category 7 twisted pair cable. Category 7 cable includes four pairs of individually insulated wires which are twisted together with a very tightly controlled twist specification. Each twisted pair is covered with its own individual conductive shield. All of the pairs are then bundled together and covered with a common shield. Typically, both the individual shields and the common shield are grounded. The common shield is covered with an outer plastic protective jacket.
Present day connectors used for high speed data transmission are normally constructed with side-by-side insulation displacing connection terminals which require that the wire pair be separated for termination. This separation creates impedance mismatches at high frequencies, thereby affecting transmission quality. It would therefore be desirable to have a connector with insulation displacing connection terminals which do not require the separation of the individual wires of the twisted pair.